As part of ATL's Union Learning Fund project, ATL Midlands have organized their first English and maths week. This is the first of three blogs we'll feature this week from Joanne Miles about embedding English.

A few days ago I received three emails from teachers in different schools, all with various issues. One was trying to push the school to tackle homophobic language and was meeting resistance from senior management; another wrote about not being able to be themselves at work because of derogatory comments about their sexuality; the third told me about the complete absence of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) young people in their school.

Teachers care passionately about their pupils and strive to close the education achievement gap, but their job becomes more difficult as inequality and poverty levels rise – as they will under Conservative party policies

Are parents really irrelevant to school improvement? You might think so, given the present behaviour of our political masters, but without them we’re not likely to get the education we want or that our children deserve.

How can vocational teachers and trainers (VTTs) develop and their subject and pedagogical expertise? How much CPD goes on ‘under the radar’ as VTTs seek their own ways to maintain their professional connections? Do FE and skills institutions provide enough support to new, experienced and part-time VTTS?